Khruangbin and Lord Huron to headline Outside Festival. New perk: Easily find new routes and hidden gems, upcoming running events, and more near you. Your weekly Local Running Newsletter has everything you need to lace up!
I am not a runner. And yet somehow, on a recent rainy Saturday morning, I found myself literally chasing men around the marshy parkland in my East London neighborhood. I sat down on the first bench I stumbled upon and thought about what a great story it would be if a very lovely, witty, and attractive Londoner just so happened to be running very late that morning. Late enough that I was in the way of his path. Never again would I be forced to even think about running in the rain, except for when we would laugh about this story at our wedding.
Alas, Prince Charming did not show. He and all his fellow could-be suitors were already two miles ahead of me by the time I dragged myself off my sodden log bench and back toward the trail. I sighed, disappointed in myself at this spectacular lack of stamina. Well, I figured, I guess this is why people go to run club every week. I went not because I wanted to run, but because I was looking for dates. Like many other singles, I have grown exasperated by the apps. According the the Pew Research Center , at least 30 percent of American adults have used dating apps at some point, and we are fairly evenly split between finding the experience to be a net positive or net negative.
I would place myself in this more optimistic categoryβI have met many wonderful men on dating apps who have become close friends despite the romance not working out. So, I figured, why not try some literal speed dating? Everyone I talked to said essentially the same thing: dating has gotten harder, the apps have gotten tired, and we want to try something new.
How hard is a 5K? I wondered. Many successful couples have met each other at previous Swimmers, the founder told me at the time. They bonded over the sufferfest, and later married. That could be me! I thought. Scores of people around the world have turned to hobbies and run clubs to try to meet others with common interests, and many companies have popped up to serve those desires. At least one dating app, Thursday , is trying to make that easier by facilitating singles-only events in cities across the world, catering to a wide variety of interests.
